Tuesday, October 17, 2006

Listening for straw man arguments

1. Strawman argument: The elderly live great distances from their children.

Fact: 60% of the elderly live with or within ten minutes of their children.

2. Strawman argument: The elderly are alienated from their children.

Fact: In the survey, 50% of the elderly had seen their children within the last 48 hours, and 78% had seen them within the last week.

3. Strawman argument: The majority of elderly people rarely see the siblings.

Fact: In the survey, 43% of elderly women and 34% of elderly men had seen their siblings within the last week.

4. Strawman argument: In the US, families no longer care for their elderly members. Fact: Only 5% of the elderly are cared for in institutions, and most elderly people living with their families are there because they are sick.